Serbian president accused of undermining rule of law

Serbia’s top corruption and organized crime prosecutors have formally accused President Aleksandar Vučić of exerting “unlawful influence” on ongoing investigations, following a series of public attacks on the judiciary.

In a televised interview on Noveember 3, Vučić labelled the prosecutors a “corrupt gang” and blamed them for delays in a hotel redevelopment project on the site of the bombed-out former Yugoslav Army headquarters in central Belgrade, which has been stalled due to an ongoing criminal investigation, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

“Through his offensive and untrue remarks, Aleksandar Vučić once again targeted the acting prosecutors,” the prosecution said in a joint statement issued via its official email. They added that the president had “overstepped and abused his powers granted by law and the Constitution, attempting to exert inappropriate and unlawful influence on this office by commenting on ongoing criminal investigations.”

Vučić’s remarks come amid a year of anti-corruption protests against his government, which intensified following the 2024 collapse of a railway station canopy in Novi Sad that killed 16 people and became a rallying point for demonstrators decrying entrenched corruption. In his latest interview with a pro-government broadcaster, the president also criticised the judiciary for releasing protesters detained during student-led demonstrations.

“It’s unbelievable that you have a situation where every day they release people who throw rods, sticks, and beat people on the streets,” Vučić said. “You’re a corrupt gang in the prosecutor’s offices, in most of the prosecutor’s offices, with as many corrupt judges as you want.”

The prosecutors warned that such statements “directly obstruct justice and undermine the constitutional and legal order and the rule of law.” In April, hundreds of judges and prosecutors had expressed “great concern” over Vučić’s public remarks, some of which they argued could constitute unlawful interference.

The European Commission’s latest progress report on Serbia’s EU accession echoed these concerns, urging authorities to “reduce political interference in the judiciary and prosecution” and noting that “undue pressure on the judiciary remains a concern, with little or no follow-up from relevant institutions, and there are concerns about prosecutorial autonomy.”

By Vafa Guliyeva